Stuck in the Middle of Love
by burtneymac95
Summary: "Dad, I don't know want you to end up dead, okay? Can you imagine what would happen to us if we lost you?" Alexis wants her father to choose between her or shadowing Beckett. Based on spoilers for Season 4.
1. Chapter 1

_**SPOILER ALERT! DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED!**_

___**Hey Castle fans! I know, I know, it's been a long time since I updated or wrote another story, but I'm back. My internet has been acting really stupid the past couple months and we finally got it working again!**_

_**So anyway, I got this idea from a spoiler on .. It said that Alexis was going to have a problem with Beckett in Season 4 because she believes Kate is putting her father in danger. **_

**_Disclaimer: I do not and never will own Castle or any of its characters, settings, or storylines._**

**_Here is my version of how it might go. Hope you enjoy!_**

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><p>"I can't believe after all these years, we're having this fight." Castle said to his daughter.<p>

"Dad, I don't know want you to end up dead, okay? I understand that you enjoy what you do, following Detective Beckett around, but think about me, think about Gram. Can you imagine what would happen to us if we lost you?" She told him, trying to get him to see how much he meant to both her and her grandmother.

"Pumpkin, nothings going to happen to me. you don't have to worry."

"You don't know that dad! You were willing to jump in front of bullet for her last month! As much as I like Beckett, I'm kinda glad you were so far away."

"Are you saying that you're _glad_ Detective Beckett got shot?" he asked, anger evident in his voice.

"No, of course not. I'm just glad it wasn't you." she reassured him.

Castle put his head down, exhausted.

"What are you saying, Alexis?" he asked, quietly.

"I'm saying, either you stop shadowing Kate, or I'm going to Stanford with Ashleigh."

"Are you really making me decide between the woman I'm in love with and my daughter?"

"Yes, dad. I'm not going to sit around here while you're out working on a case, wondering night after night if my father is going to come home. I've done it for over 3 years, and I'm done."

There. She finally admitted to how much it scared and worried her that her father might not come home one day.

"Alexis….I love her." he whispered, almost inaudibly.

She put her hand on top of his. "I know you do."

"I can't…I can't just leave her. She needs me."

"She was fine before you came along. She will be fine after. Plus, I'm not saying you can't still see her, I just don't want you to shadow her at work anymore."

"And worry about whether she's okay or not? Hell no." he stated firmly.

"That's what you put me through dad! That's what me and Gram both had to worry about. First there was that time when her apartment blew up. Then when you got kidnapped by that Triple Killer or whatever. Then when you got locked in a freezer and almost froze to death, and lastly, you almost took a bullet for her. It's not fair to us!"

Castle sighed. It was true. He put himself in risk of dying many times in the past 3 years. And honestly, he never thought about what it would do to Alexis and Martha. He was just so hell bent on protecting Kate and being there for her, he didn't care what he did, as long as she was safe.

"I feel like she's taking advantage of you." Alexis said quietly.

Castles' head shot up as he looked at her intensely.

"How so?" he asked.

"Well it's obvious you love her. She's a detective, she has to know that. You repeatedly put yourself in danger for her, but when has she ever did that for you? She constantly flirts with you and gives you hope that there might be something more between you guys, but yet she doesn't do anything. She still has a boyfriend, whom you say she doesn't love, but yet she's still with him, knowing how you feel about her. It just…doesn't make sense to me."

"She's scared, I understand that. She hides in these relationships with men she doesn't love because her mothers murder made her unable to be happy or let herself fully commit to someone, afraid that they would leave her." he said, defending Kate.

"But she knows that you won't leave her! You prove that to her all the time, but yet she doesn't give you a chance. You spend so much time worrying about her, you….you forget about me."

Castle stood up, enraged. "That is not true Alexis, and you know it! I'm still home every night. I still cook for you, help you with your homework, give you advice. I let you do whatever the hell you want because I can trust you. I'm a good father, and I've never shut you out for her."

"What happened to family movie nights? Every Friday we would order pizza and watch a movie? What about Laser Tag Thursday? What happened to going out for breakfast or lunch, then maybe going to a museum or the park after? All of that slowly stopped once you started shadowing Beckett. Yes, you made breakfast, then you were off to the precinct right after. Yes, you would give me advice, but somehow it would turn into giving you a theory on a case. Yeah dad, you were still there, but I knew I was no longer the center of your life, Beckett was."

"And what's so wrong with that? I have put my life on hold all of these years for you. I dedicated all my time to being a good father. I gave you everything you ever wanted. Yes, I admit, these past years I haven't been readily available to you as much as I used to be. But I've been happier the past 3 years then I ever have. Kate changed me. She made me such a better man. I used to be this popular, playboy who got whatever I wanted, and then I met Beckett…."

"And she was something you wanted but couldn't get." Alexis interrupted.

"Exactly. At first, it was just about getting her….ah-em….in bed. But slowly, I started to fall for her. I started to see that there was more to Beckett then her body and her looks. I am so in love with her it's not even funny. I have never felt this way about any woman, ever. Yes, she may have a boyfriend. Yes she may not be ready to commit the way I am, but as long as she's in my life, I don't care what she is to me. I protect her because...I can't imagine my life without her anymore."

"And I can't imagine my life without you. I already don't really have a mother, I can't lose my father."

"Kate will take care of you if anything ever happens…."

"I don't want Kate, dad! I need you! I want my father! I like Kate, don't get me wrong, I do. But not when she puts my father in danger day after day, night after night. If you want to just be with her, marry her, have babies with her, that is completely fine by me. But if you want to shadow her and repeatedly put yourself in danger just to protect her, that's where I'm putting my foot down. I love you dad. And I want you to be happy. But….think about me, Gram, hell…think of Beckett. What would she do if you died for her? She wouldn't be able to live with herself, knowing that she should've be the one dead instead of you."

Alexis looked at the clock, showing 12:35 a.m.

"I better get going to bed. I love you." she said, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. "Whatever you choose won't ever change that."

And with that, she walked away, leaving Castle to think about the long and intense fight he had with his daughter, and the hardest decision of his life he would have to make.

Castle stared into space when he heard a knock on his office door. He turned around to see Beckett standing there, tears in her eyes. Had she heard the whole fight? Maybe it wasn't a good idea for them to have fought about this when Kate was just upstairs, re-cooperating from the previous month.

"She's right, you know?" Castle nodded as Beckett slowly wobbled in.

She sat down next to him, as she saw tears in his eyes. She comfortingly put her arm around his shoulder, pulling him in as he lay his head on her shoulder and cried.

Once he got all of the tears out, Kate whispered, "Castle, we have to talk."

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><p><em><strong>Thoughts? Shall I continue? Reviews are greatly appreciated!<strong>_


	2. Chapter 2

**_Thank you sooo much for the amazing reviews on the first chapter. Glad you all liked it!_**

**_Anyway, without further a due, here's chapter 2! Hope you enjoy! (:_**

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><p>"Castle, we have to talk." she whispered, as he nodded against her shoulder and sat up.<p>

"How much did you hear?" he asked.

"Pretty much all of it. You guys were yelling pretty loud. I heard my name being spoke, so I decided to see what the fighting was about."

"I'm so sorry you had to hear all of that." he apologized, realizing that she heard all of the things Alexis had said about her, and everything he had also confessed to his daughter.

"Don't be. It's the truth. Your daughter needs you, okay? I lost my mother tragically, I don't want Alexis to lose her dad, by the same people who are involved in my mothers' case."

"What are you saying?" he asked, nervously.

"I'm saying that it would mean a lot to me and a lot to your daughter, if you would stop shadowing me. You and I both know you have enough research to keep Nikki Heat going for years."

"What about you though? I don't…I don't want anything to happen to you."

"I was a cop way before I met you and I managed to keep myself safe. I can do it again. It just won't be….as much fun. Besides, I got a couple months anyway before I head back to work, and even then I'll be on desk duty for a while."

"I don't want to have to worry about you all the time, after that." he confessed.

"You won't have to. You can still help us with cases. I'll still call you for help or your weird, silly theories. It's just…too dangerous for you to go in the field with us anymore."

"It won't be the same, not seeing you guys."

She put her hand on top of his and squeezed it. "Tell you what, we'll go out for coffee every other day. You can come visit me anytime you want. This doesn't mean goodbye."

"So that's all we're gonna be? Friends who occasionally hang out?" Castle asked furiously, as he stood up.

"What else is there? I'm with Josh, Castle."

"Which I don't understand, especially when he barely visited you while you were in the hospital."

"He saved my life! I owe him." she said, not exactly believing it.

"How many god damn times have I saved your life? Huh? I don't get deadly squat. I have always been there for you, when Josh never was. I show you day after day just how much I care about you, but you still don't give me the time of day! I love you Kate, so much I can't stand it. I know you don't love Josh. You know you don't love Josh. So why the hell are you still with him?"

Kate put her head down in shame. "I don't want to talk about this." she whispered.

"Kate, we have to talk about this. Haven't you realized that life is too short? You were dead for 30 seconds Kate, doesn't that mean anything to you?"

"Yes! It means so much to me Rick! I get to live another day, and who can I thank for that? Who is the one who brought me back? Josh! That's why I'm still with him. I know I have no future with him, but for right now, I'm going to thank him for saving me life. Shouldn't you be grateful to him?"

"Of course I'm grateful that he saved you, but that doesn't mean I like the guy. Or the way he treats you. He was never there. I was at your bedside 24-7, giving you all the care you needed. I offered my home to you, so I knew you would be well taken care of. And does Josh even come to visit you? No!"

"He has a job!" she yelled, defending her boyfriend, even if she didn't believe that was a necessary reason to not visit.

"We all have jobs Kate, but part of a relationship, is making your partner more important than the job."

"Which brings us back to you not shadowing me anymore."

"Don't change the subject Kate."

"I just did. It's late. I'm tired. Try to get some sleep." She said as stood up and walked out of the room, leaving Castle to think about the nights events.

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><p>The next morning, Castle came downstairs to the smell of fresh coffee and bacon. He only got a few hours of sleep the night before, his conversations with his 2 favorite woman playing over and over again in his head. Alexis was sitting at the island, reading something and Martha was pouring herself some coffee. Where was Kate?<p>

"Good morning Richard!" his mother greeted him.

"Morning Mother, Alexis."

Alexis didn't even look up from her book.

"Where's Kate?" he asked.

"Don't know darling. Figured she slept in this morning. Sounded like you two had a late night."

He looked at the clock. 9:26. She never slept this late. He ran up the steps, and into her bedroom. All of her stuff was gone.

Panicked, he pulled out his iPhone and pressed 2 on his speed dial.

Her phone went straight to voice mail.

_"Shit_." he thought.

Where was Kate Beckett?

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><p><strong><em>Thoughts?<em>**


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